St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-07-22
MEN MOVED DOWN.
A Terrible Accident on the Erie
Near HOhOkuS.

Near HOhOkuS.
New YORK, July 21.- A frightful
railroad accident occurred this morning
on the Erie railroad between Allendale
and Hohokus. A gang of Italian Ia
borers were at work ballasting on the
railroad little distance from a sharp
curve on the road about three-Quarters
of mile above Hohol1us. The Chica-
90 express, which was due an hour be-
fore, had not arrived, and these men
were busy at work, unconscious OF the
terrible fate that was in store for them.
At quarter past seven O'Clock train
No. 12-the express which was due an
hour previOuS-daShed round the curve
before the men had the slightest warm
ing, and struck the gang OF men, Kill
ing twelve or fifteen on the spot, and
wOunding many more. The shrlekS OF
the victims were heart-rendering and
the track presented sickening sight.
being covered with mangled bodies.
The rails were spattered with blood and
strewn with broken bones and
PIECES OF RAGGED FLESH.
Some of the bodies were mangled be-
yOnd description, and crushed out OF
Semblance OF humanity. The most OF
the victims deaths must have been in
Simultaneous, but some of them seemed
TO he i'm the last throes of death when
the train was brought to StandStill. w.
l.. Hudson, passenger OH local train
following the express, said that the
scene at the place of accident was the
most Sickening he ever saw. "All along
the track" continued Mr.. Hudson, ARE
strewn arms, legs, trunks and other
parts of bodies, end the track f0r a long
distance is slippery with blood. The
train must have dashed into the midst
of the men before they were aware OF
their danger. The conductor OF the
train upon which | rode said that the
train hands of the express were not to
blame, and that the foreman of the gang
should have been OH the lookout and
warned the men.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT
of the terrible accident says that about
100 Italians were at work on the road
bed. when a train came along and the
Italians stepped on to the other track to
allow it to 90 by, but just then the Chi
cago express thundered down on them
at the rate of fifty miles an hour and
literally moved it's way through them,
throwing them right and left, tearing
arms. legs and heads Off and grinding
flesh into the ground for 200 or 800 feet.
So fierce was the shock that although
the engine struck nothing but human
beings, the cowcatcher was torn, twisted
and broken into pieces. Some OF the
Italians were crowded against the rocks
in a very narrow space, and they
crouched down in terror. The engineer
reversed his engine and was coming to
a stop, when the passengers told him to
90 ahead. Looking back they saw the
uninjured Italians
ACTING LIKE MANIACS.
They were yelling, geSticulating and
tearing their clothes. Some were
kneeling and others dashed about i'll the
middle of the CHASTITY pile of mangled
bodies. When they saw the train stop
ping they made rush for it, and had
they reached it undoubtedly the en-
gineer, fireman and conductor would
have been murdered. For this reason
it was deemed best to come ON to Jersey
City, where the engineer and conductor
were closeted with the officers of the
road and away from where they could
be interviewed.
Eleven men were killed. Conductor
Bamper, who was on the construction
train behind the express, states that he
never saw
so HORRIBLE A SCENE.
One unfortunate, whose brains were
scattered for twenty yards along the
track, jumped up three times after he
was thrown aside by the cowcatcher:
and another man, whom he went to lift
up by the hand while he was yet quiv-
ering, caught his wrist in conyulSive
death grip, from which he was with
difficulty released. He saw many SINH
lar cases, and describes the Shrieks and
means of the wounded and dying as
something awful.